Much has been made over the purported ability of forests to act as a "sponge" removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Politicians have jumped on this bandwagon, as have those selling and promoting so called "carbon-offsets". However, basic biology dictates otherwise.
Sphere: Related ContentBrowsing Posts in Environment
Two recent reports add to the growing evidence of animal migrations due to climate change. While wild animals provide a number of benefits to mankind such as the pollination of crops and control of pests, the introduction of new species can include pest species and can result in the spread of invasive plant seeds, spread damaging fungus and agricultural and human diseases, and alter existing predator/prey relationships. The arrival of new species can either positively or negatively impact agriculture, human health and the economy.
Sphere: Related ContentA report in today’s issue of the magazine “Science” published by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) provides a new prespective on the role of fire in Global Climate Change. This publication, in the most prestigious U.S. scientific journal, concludes that the effects of fire on the Earth’s ecosystems and processes, and Global Climate Change “have been underestimated” (Fire in the Earth System. Bowman et al. Science 24 April 2009: 481-484).
Sphere: Related ContentThe U.S. National Snow and Ice Data Center yesterday updated status of Arctic ice coverage (http://nsidc.org/arcticseaicenews/2009/040609.html) with the report that at the end of March the extent of ice coverage was similar to recent years, but below the longer-term 1979 – 2000 year average (peak coverage had been reached by February 28). Most significantly, NSIC also reported that the percentage of younger, thinner and thus more vulnerable ice continued to increase.
Sphere: Related Content"Feedback" is a term to describe myriad processes in both the biological and physical components of our ecosystems. Feedback is not at all a new discovery, or one that is unique to global warming/climate change. While in the past feedback processes have been cited for contributing to the stability of ecosystems, feedback processes are also critical threats to the stability of global systems in response to global warming. In this context, feedback processes can be considered a response to an external addition of energy to a system that magnifies, or increases, that energy input. Some examples may help.
Sphere: Related ContentDeep within the Brazilian Amazon Forest, we find the find a single, isolated small hut surrounded by smoking mounds constructed of brick and earth. The hut belongs to a poor woodcutter and the charcoal that he is making in his brick ovens is the sole support for his family. Our woodcutter, and thousands like him, account for about 20% of the 1400km2 (540sq. mi.) of the Amazon Forest that is deforested every month. The charcoal that they produce is eventually shipped down the Amazon and used in steel production, primarily in the United States and China.
Sphere: Related ContentThere are a number of "tipping points", loosely defined as critical thresholds at which small human activities can result in large, uncontrollable, long-term climatic consequences. Not so long ago, the very thought of a tipping point seemed unreasonable, now they appear both real and near. We also have a tendency to believe that there is a smooth relationship between our actions and the environmental responses. We are accustomed to seeing graphs of either a straight line, or a curve. Tipping points, however, will most likely result in an abrupt or disjunctive response.
Sphere: Related Content
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0 United States License.